Barack Obama says Eagles DE Chris Long an example of what's 'best about America'

It’s not every day you get praise from a former President of the United States as an example of the best the country has to offer.

Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Chris Long got a lot of attention for donating his entire 2017 salary to charity. He started by donating his first six game checks to fund scholarships his hometown of Charlottesville, Va., not long after a car struck anti-racism protesters there after a white nationalist rally. Then Long decided to donate the rest of his checks. He used the rest of his salary to start “Pledge 10 for Tomorrow,” which will promote educational equity in Philadelphia, Boston and St. Louis, the three NFL cities he played in, according to Philly.com.

Long’s tale drew the attention of former President Barack Obama, who included Long when he was sharing stories on Twitter “that remind us what’s best about America.”

As we count down to the new year, we get to reflect and prepare for what’s ahead. For all the bad news that seemed to dominate our collective consciousness, there are countless stories from this year that remind us what's best about America.

Chris Long gave his paychecks from the first six games of the NFL season to fund scholarships in Charlottesville, VA. He wanted to do more, so he decided to give away an entire season’s salary. That’s a story from 2017. https://t.co/NL0RoARkan

Long has been active on social media for a long time, and has been discussing social issues on Twitter all season. He recently said he had no interest in being the “anti-Colin,” a reference to Colin Kaepernick. He said he supports Kaepernick’s right to protest and why he’s protesting.

ZERO interest in being used as the anti-Colin. I support Colin’s right to protest, and what he’s protesting. He deserves a job in the NFL. He’s donated as much $ as I have to social causes.

When I said in the piece “it isn’t the knee, it’s what you do in the community” I was actually referencing Colin + others. Players involved symbolically have done well following the symbolism w action. If they didn’t, it’d be an empty gesture.

Long said in the Philly.com piece that Obama tweeted out that he wanted to do his good deeds now, before his platform of playing in the NFL goes away. Based on what Long has done this year, perhaps he’ll be looking at a platform that’s much bigger than football after he retires.

Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Chris Long was praised by Barack Obama for his charitable acts. (AP)